Word: vermonter
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Dates: during 1990-1999
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Meanwhile, Vermont to the north is dotted with antiques shops and picturesque Green Mountain hamlets, Vermont is ideal for hiking on the Appalachian Trail (AT) or biking on the state's wooded dirt roads. Home to the hippie capitalist empire of Ben & Jerry's, in Barre, Vermont is easily accessible by Vermont Transit, whose buses run frequently from South Station...
...refusing to send their taxes to Montpelier. At least three other towns are talking about joining the rebellion. In Manchester, volunteer firefighters are trying to persuade locals and other gold towns to join the revolt. And on both sides of the battle, people are worried that the fabric of Vermont is fraying for good. Says anti-Act 60 lobbyist Bob Stannard: "This is civil...
...problem of equitable school funding isn't confined to Vermont. It first became an issue during the 1970s, when California and four other states, after successful suits by poor parents and school districts, were forced to hammer out new funding plans. The issue heated up again in 1989, when Kentucky's supreme court found the state's funding system unconstitutional. Since then, courts have thrown out school-financing systems in 13 other states. Some, like New Jersey, remain perpetually mired, unable to arrive at a new formula, but most have begun emphasizing the notion of "adequacy," making sure each student...
...well-off Vermont towns like Dorset, where the property-tax rate will go up nearly 35[cents] per $100 of property value, Act 60 has been met with fury and defiance. The elementary school principal quit when she was forced to let teachers go and scale back art and music classes. Last year the Inn at Willow Pond, a major corporate conference center, gave $25,000 to charity. This year, when the charities called, "we told 'em to call Montpelier--all that money went to Act 60 taxes," says owner Ron Bauer. Even angrier are affluent parents who moved...
...crisis is forcing Vermonters to take another look at their state. Is this a place where, as activist Stannard says, "you work hard and do the best with what you've got," or is it a place where, as Rivers says, "Vermonters take care of Vermonters"? It will be years before the people of Vermont sort out whether the benefits of Act 60 were worth all the turmoil. But John Irving, for one, is not waiting around to find out. He's starting up his own private school--and stealing the principal away from the private academy where state senator...